10 Insane Stories Behind Classic Albums

Ever since the dawn of time, most rock artists have found themselves falling victim to their own record contract. While you might wait your whole life to actually snag a record deal, the idea of being at the beck and call of some corporate executives never really sits well with rock stars over time. Or in John Lennon's case, having a lawsuit be breathing down your neck.

After unintentionally plagiarizing Chuck Berry's You Can't Catch Me for the Beatles' Come Together back in the '60s, Rock and Roll was supposed to be a bunch of rock and roll covers used to get him out of his settlement, with the proceeds going to Berry's publishers. In what Lennon would later describe as his "lost weekend," the recording sessions in Los Angeles were a disaster, as he spent most of the time drinking his troubles away and generally not taking care of himself.

Even some of the session musicians like Jim Keltner have talked about how risky it was to be in Lennon's presence around this time, oftentimes being encouraged to drink and drive and on one occasion having to restrain him after a fight at a nightclub. Though he would eventually retreat to home life in his later years, Rock and Roll was the culmination of the darker side of Lennon's life, after which he retreated back to New York and became a house husband tending to his son Sean.